Beater for suction cleaners



E. B. HOFF.

BEATER FOR SUCTION CLEANERS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR, 5| I9I9.

Patented July 11,

w V at EARL B. HOFF, OF EAST CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR, BY

MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

ELECTRIC VACUUM CLEANER COMPANY, INC., 015 EAST CLEVELAND, OHIO, A COR- PQRATION OF NEW YORK.

Application filed March 5, 1919. Serial No.

T 0 all whom it may concern Be it known that I, EARL B. Horr, a citizen of the United States, residin at East Cleveland, Ohio, in the county of iuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Beaters for Suction Cleaners, of which the followingis a full, clear,and exact description, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings.

This invention relates to suction cleaners or vacuum cleaners such as are widely used for the purpose of removing dust, lint, and other light and dry refuse from rugs, carpets, and other floor coverings by means of an inrush of air into a suitably shaped nozzle applied thereto and moved about and over the surface thereof. Experience indicates that the effectiveness of the cleaner is much increased in case the fabric can be whipped,

beaten, or otherwise agitated during the time that the suction nozzle is applied thereto; and experience has further proven that the use of a. stifl' or bristle brush for this purpose is often disadvantageous, particularly in case that brush be positively driven; for the abrading action of such bristles upon the carpet is sufficient to do serious injury thereto in case the tool be stopped and held momentarily in a single place as is frequently done thoughtlessly or as incident to the moving of furniture. Also bristle brushes because of their stiffne$ are subject to rapid wear which necessitates replacement or else results in an inefficient cleaning; and bristles are peculiarly liable to become entangled with lint, hairs, andcar'pet nap.

The objects of the present invention are the provision of a. beating or agitating device which shall not injure or wear the floor fabrics or mar or abrade bare floors or become entangled with refuse or itself be subject to destructive wear; the provision of a device which shall be highly efficient for the purpose in view, easy to make, and install; while further objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the description proceeds.

In the drawings accompanying and forming a part of this application I have shown one embodiment of my said invention al-.

though it will be understood that those drawings are illustrative merely and do not limitme to the particular featuresand constructions therein set forth.

In these drawings Fig. 1 is a sectional Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 11, 1922. 280,818.

view of a suction cleaner nozzle same equipped with a. beater of type; Fig. 2 is a perspective beater Essentially my improved beater consists of a shafthaving bearing means and driving means and encircled by a rubber sleeve havin radiating flexible lashes adapted as the shaft is revolved to beat and whip the floor covering;

in order to prevent slippage between the shaft and sleeve the two are preferably non cylindrical, and in order to secure uniformity of effort one or both of the same are preferably twisted. The shaft is. preferably a square rod ofsoft steel as shown at 1 iii Figs. 3 and '7, and the driving device is a grooved belt pulley 2, having a square hole adapted to slip over the shaft. The ends ofthe shaft are turned down as shown at 3, 3

to form bearings and the pulley slipped in place. preferably but not necessarily at the middle of the shaft. One end of the shaft is then clamped in an immovable manner as by a vice (shown conventionally in Fig. 8 at 4-) and the other end is provided with a movable handle as shown conventionally at 5 in Fig. 8, and the shaft given a twist around its longitudinal axis. I have shown this twist as subtending an angle of 180 which I find very satisfactory, but it could be more or less as desired. One of its effects is to lock the pulley rigid in place while a further beneficial result will appear later.

Upon this shaft I locate a hollow rubber sleeve 13 carrying lashes 14 which may be made either integral therewith or independent thereof. One mode of forming these rubberparts I have illustrated in Figs. 5 and 6, in which 8. 8 represent the halves of an elongated split mould made of similar 105 grooves there extend the diverging narrow 11Q holes 10, which lead toward the corners of the block; and supported in the axis of the recess is a square core-bar 11 which is spaced from all the walls thereof. I have shown dowel pins 12, 12 for keeping the halves of the mould in line; and by injecting the cavity full of suitable rubber composition under pressure the same can be caused to assume the-form of a square tube 13 having integral flexible lashes 14 defined by the radiating holes. This tube is cured or vulcanized in the usual way as customary with other rubber articles designed to yield a flexible product.

These tubes are then cut to the proper length or lengths and applied to the shaft 1 as illustrated in Fig. 9 whereupon the rubber being soft will acquire the twist of the shaft Y methods herein set forth for making the rubber parts since any known or desired mode of making the tubes may be employed; and I do not restrict myself to the making of the lashes integral with-the tube or by extrusion from the tube-since it is equall feasible to insert strips of flexible material into the holes 10, 10 prior to the injection of the I rubber composition, or otherwise to apply those lashes to the tube in case some other mode be adopted for its production. Neither do I restrict myself to a square shaft or a square tube, or even to a tube of the same shape as the shaft, since the flexibility of the former will enable it to conform to the shape of the latter; and I do not restrict myself to twisted from end to end, a flexible rubber sleeve closely embracing said shaft, and flexible radiating lashes carried by said sleeve and projecting therefrom in directions which vary with the twist of the said shaft.

2. A rug heater for suction cleaners consisting of a non-cylindrical metal bar having a driving pulley fitting snugly thereon, between its ends said bar being twisted from end to end, in combination with a flexible rubber sleeve embracing said bar and formed with radiating lashes. g

3. As an article of manufacture a hollow prismatic rubber sleeve having flexible lashes projecting outwardly from its edges, the ends of said sleeve being open.

4. As an article of manufacture a square rubber sleeve having a row of integral flexible lashes projecting from each of its corners, the ends of said sleeve being open.

5. In a device of the character described, in combination. a prismatic rubber sleeve having a row of integral flexible lashes projecting from each of its corners, and a twisted prismatic rod inserted into said sleeve with its corners coinciding with the corners of said sleeve, whereby said lashes are given a helical arrangement, and bearin and driving means for said rod.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aflix my signature.

EARL B. HOFF. 

